Report: Nation's kids need to get more physical

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Washington • Reading, writing, arithmetic  and PE?

The prestigious Institute of Medicine is recommending that schools provide opportunities for at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day for students and that PE become a core subject.

The report, released Thursday, says only about half of the nation's youngsters are getting at least an hour of vigorous or moderate-intensity physical activity every day.

Another concern, the report says, is that 44 percent of school administrators report slashing big chunks of time from physical education, arts and recess since the passage of the No Child Left Behind law in 2001 in order to boost classroom time for reading and math.

With childhood obesity on the rise  about 17 percent of children ages 2 through 19 are obese  and kids spending much of the day in the classroom, the chairman of the committee that wrote the report said schools are the best place to help shape up the nation's children.

ARTICLE PHOTO GALLERY

"Schools for years have been responsible for various health programs such as nutrition, breakfast and lunch, immunizations, screenings," said Harold W. Kohl III, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Texas School of Public Health.

"Physical activity should be placed alongside those programs to make it a priority for us as a society," he said.

The report calls on the Education Department to recommend that PE be adopted as a core subject.

It says physical education in school is the "only sure opportunity" for youngsters to have access to activity that will help keep them healthy.

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